Help for Smokers to Quit

CHICAGO (AFP) - An animal study released Thursday bolsters the notion that drug cravings can be "switched off" by shutting down a key part of the brain, a finding that could have implications for treating addicts.
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The insular cortex, or insula, is a region deep within the brain that filters information about the body's physiological states and needs.

Researchers have previously shown that damage to the insula can dramatically extinguish a smoker's need for nicotine.

A study earlier this year found that 12 of 19 habitual smokers had effortlessly given up the weed after sustaining injuries, such as a stroke, to the small island in the cerebral cortex.

At the time, investigators were not sure whether the finding had wider implications and whether disruptions to the insula could ease the grip of other addictions, such as those to alcohol, over-eating or drugs.

But in experiments on rats, Chilean researchers have shown that temporarily "silencing" the insula suppresses cravings in drug-addicted rats and insulates them from the unpleasant side effects of medication, according to the study published in Science.

For the first experiment, the investigators gave a group of rats that were addicted to amphetamine a shot of anesthetic to numb the insula for 20 minutes.

The rats were caged in an experimental set-up composed of a darkened chamber and an adjoining bright white chamber which the rodents had been trained to associate with amphetamines.

The intervention had a pronounced impact on their behaviour, changing their preference from the white chamber to the darkened chamber -- which is a more natural setting for rats.

When the blocking was reversed, the rats once again demonstrated their desire for the drug, returning to the white chamber.

In a second experiment, the researchers injected rats with lithium, a medication used to treat mood disorders that often causes an upset tummy by way of a side effect.

The rats quickly laid on their stomachs -- showing signs of malaise. When the researchers numbed the insula prior to giving the rats the medication, they did not show any signs of discomfort and appeared to behave normally.

"This showed us that the insular cortex not only informs the rest of the brain about craving, but also gastrointestinal discomfort and that this information about bodily states may guide behaviour," said Fernando Torrealba, a neuroscientist at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in Santiago.

Taken together, his study in rats and the earlier one on smoking provide powerful evidence that the insula "underlies the conscious sense of craving," making it a good target for drugs designed to help addicts break the habit, he said.

[froggydan]

People aren't rats ! at least not all of them them ;-)  The best thing is just to stop once for all and this IS possible, no need of "miracle" drugs at all,maybe nicotinpatch for some weeks.

[frijole]

Oddly enough perhaps this has some basis. I know an alcoholic who suffered a stroke in January .  During her stay in the hospital, they discovered she had alcoholic cirrhosis.  She has not had an inclination to drink since then.  However, it could be that she doesn't remember that she did drink.

Anyways, better than cottage cheese and walnuts.

[beamishboy]

eegads..sounds vaguely like frontal lobotamy!...my fears of behavior mod- chemically induced or otherwise may be unwarranted ,but i prefer my mental mulligan straight-up...thanks for the startling update..think i may may wait for the stroke.....
bean-cottage cheese&walnuts(?)

[ladywhy]

thinkin' the same thing............

[GrandmaA]

That is a very interesting study. Thanks for sharing. Especially for people who come from families with addiction issues. I did quit smoking cold turkey after 8 years but I was only smoking 4 cigs a day at that time. That was 42 years ago, I don't think cigs had as much  nicotine in them then as today.  

[ladywhy]

What they didn't have is ALL the added chemicals which make smoking more addicting. I think there is something like 12 chemicals and one of them is Formaldahyde..isn't that embalming fluid???  I hate smoking!!!!!!!!!! I gotta quit!!!!!!!!! I 'think' it's the last stronghold I have to surrender at the Cross. I am sick of it. My Mom has emphysema, she has an anuerism in her leg...the surgeon will do nothing 'til she stops.. She is not inclined. She has congestive heart disease...it breaks my heart. When her 5 kids were young she was a very light smoker....not anymore. All I can do is get rid of them myself....
and pray....
Wouldn't ya think the FDA would request them to put all the chemicals on the box??? I mean they are talking about putting every calorie...every oz of fat, protein etc...on every menu...fast food as well as restaurants

[ladywhy]

I think it would/could be a deterrent for those who have yet to put a cig. in their mouths and even for us die hards...eeewwww what an expression!

It's such a disgusting addiction!

I quit fot 2 years...I prayed for the willingness and the desire every day. I repeated (like a mantra) "I am a non-smoker" over and over...'til I was.
ps> I also had acupuncture done at the time.
We 'just' have to reprogram the old  subconsious 'tapes' with better/positive material. I seem to be holding on to them during tx...for dear life....though I KNOW everything about them is a lie.

[Forseegood]

didn't you know the reason I posted this, is because I'm certified in this procedure? yeah! going up there to NY to find you, thought I'd let you be one of my first patients (us being friends and all) whatdayathink? he he he.....where's that dang scalpel....

[beamishboy]

if you deign to visit..i will sharpen the cudgel...  and as i am so hardheaded ,better practice your swing by splitting some hardwood into kindling-"off with his head!! "

[alagirl]

of course, coming from a family where comfort is our primary focus lol, I'll tell you how my dad finally kicked cigarettes.  and of course, it had to do with drugs.

He smoked from age 13 til well past his first heart attack and write into pneumonia.  When he got out of the hospital he'd found out he had emphysema and copd.  He finally got serious.  His doctor put him on zyban for two weeks but told him to keep smoking for the first two weeks.  Then at the beginning of week three he was told to continue the zyban and start on the strongest smoking patch.  So he did exactly that and then went down the progression of patches.  It seemed to work really well.  I think pre-starting the zyban helped him a LOT.  He had already tried the patches by themselves in the past.

Neither my son nor I have ever smoked and it is completely due to having watched my father struggle with all of his health issues.  His system is such that smoking just devestated it.

[alagirl]

write into? LOL riba riba - "right into"